Dark Waters
by starrynightingale
Summary: Pitch comes back stronger than ever, and with a new ally he is virtually unstoppable. Jack and the Guardians have to find help from a new spirit. Partially based off of the book series. Inside is very slight JackxOc but mainly awesome Guardianess.
1. Prologue

**A/N: I just wanted you guys to know that this is a test chapter. If enough people like (or review) I'll keep writing. Even if none of you read this, I'll still update. But, this is just to see if you readers like my idea. Enjoy!**

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(Unknown)

I curled up in a ball trying to conserve what little heat I had left. My stepfather locked me outside for standing up to him and for protecting my younger brother. I constantly took the drunken abuse lent to my brother out of love.

I could still see the child-like wonder and fun in my brother's eyes. I prayed that my 'father' would let me inside so I could see that I could see that happiness again. I was afraid if I stayed out here much longer, I would freeze to death. I couldn't even remember my brother's name. This was a bad sign.

Suddenly, a glowing figure floated through the trees in my backyard. Frost started to form where the figure, I think he was a little older than me, sat on the Tree. Yes, the Tree. It was special to me, but I can't remember. I can barely do anything now.

I tried to get up. I needed to get blood flowing to my fingers and toes. _Get up_, I yelled at my frozen limbs. The wind started to spastically blow and the snow started to fall harder. I swore I heard someone yelling. "Why can't I save her!?" I distantly recognized that it probably belonged to the boy, and he sounded very distressed. I wonder what was bothering him.

"All I can do is make her colder!" The voice stated in defeat. "At least if I make her colder, she will be at peace sooner." _Was he talking about me?_ The blizzard grew around me, and the temperature must have dropped twenty degrees. But then I was warm, so warm. I fell over onto my side. I felt so toasty, though I couldn't feel my arms or legs. Or my body for that matter. _Do I even have a body?_ The last thing I saw was the moon cutting through the clouds before the blackness closed in.

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(Jack)

I had seen the girl about twelve years ago. When I pasted the small town in North Carolina, the little blond girl paused to wave at me. I waved back, but I couldn't stick around. There was a large cold front heading toward Georgia, and someone had to give them a long overdue snow day.

I did stay long enough to hear what I can only assume was her father hit her, yell at her for making up imaginary friends, and for waving at nothing. I was upset by this, but I learned long before that trying to help in these situations only made things worse.

If you had told me that I would meet her again, I would have told you that something was wrong with your head.

But I did meet the same blond haired, green-eyed girl again. I would have never expected the situation I met her in, for went I met her again; she was slowly freezing to death.

I couldn't bear it. I got so enraged with MIM and myself. There was a blizzard scheduled for this area, and I had to bring the snow. I started yelling at MIM, letting him know my sorrow and anger. I couldn't see another person suffer because of my work. I left before the nameless girl did actually die. I had no idea that I would see her again, and in less than a week.

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**A/N: So what did you think for the first chapter? Review if you feel like it, PM me, whatever. Tell me if I should continue or dump this in the metaphorical fanfiction garbage can. Come at me bros!**

**I realized that I am typing this at 1:06 in the morning. **

**If you type or write 'was saw' or 'saw was' is really fun because it's the same forward and backwards. I can't remember the name for those.**

**I'm done now.**

**Seriously.**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: So I know at least one person enjoyed my story, so it is my job as the author to continue. Sorry that the first chapter was so short. It wasn't even really a chapter, just a prologue type thingy. This chapter is going to be longer and probably better written. I'm not writing at midnight! I didn't let my editor (best friend) look at either of these chapters before posting them. She's going to kill me for starting a new story. * Gulp * Anyways, on with the show.**

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(Jack)

I was in Virginia spreading the snow days when I saw a commotion out of the corner of my eye. It was the girl again. _The girl! The dying girl! I thought she was, well dead. And she has brown hair now? _She was running from a herd of Nightmares. _What were Nightmares doing here!?_ I saw a man in a business suit walk out of a nearby building. _Good, maybe he will help her._ He rushed directly through the girl, catching her by surprise and making her trip. I was shocked. _What just- did he- is she a-_

The Nightmares were upon her, stomping and biting at her. _Why are there Nightmares? Does that mean that he is back? _I shook my head. _ Doesn't matter, she needs help. _I rushed to help her, only to stop when I heard _his_ voice.

"Stay out of this, _Guardian._" Pitch appeared at the top of the hill, sneering at me. "This one is mine, and nobody, not even your precious Manny can stop it."

I glared at him, then flew over to the girl. I swung my staff, turning several Nightmares to dust. I landed next to her and offered her a hand up. She looked pretty beat up, her clothing torn in a couple of places from the previous attack. She looked at me, terrified and confused, but took my hand all the same. We both stood up as more Nightmares trotted up to us.

"I'm Jack Frost, what is your name?" I asked. She jumped when she almost touched a Nightmare. They were closing, in fully surrounded us at this point.

She laughed nervously. "Do you think right now is the time for introductions?" A Nightmare to the right of us neighed and pawed at the ground. "I-Its, M-Maxie." She stuttered in fear. I could feel her trembling as the dark horses closed in tighter and tighter.

"Don't be afraid Maxie. We're going to have a little fun." I remember that this calmed Jamie down when he first saw a Nightmare and Pitch. I blasted the first layer of Nightmares with icicles and made a snow wall about three feet tall in their place. "SNOWBALL FIGHT! Each Nightmare is 10 points, hit Pitch and you win."

"Are you nuts!" She yelled at me. I waved my hand and snowballs appeared all around our feet. I grabbed one and lobbed it at the nearest horse. When it connected, the fearling crumble to black dust. I smiled reassuringly at her, and handed her a snowball. She looked at it for a moment, then threw it as far as she could, nailing a Nightmare about 3 yards away from Pitch. She just laughed when she got a little braver and joined in. We had cleared about half of the fear horses, and I was sure I was winning when I saw Pitch finally react to the situation. He drew his arm back, and I saw black sand form into a large arrow.

"No," I whispered. He loosed the dark arrow, and I swung my staff to protect myself and missed. I realized that the arrow was intended for a kill shot at Maxie. There was no time to freeze anything. I reached out, trying to block at least some of it. The arrow sliced my palm open and kept going, but I did at least redirect it. Instead of hitting her in the back of the head, it ended up only hitting her in the lower back. Her knees gave out from underneath, and she fell to the ground. I kneeled down to help he. "Maxie, you've got to trust me. I know you're in a lot of pain right now but you have to climb on my back and hold on tight. I will take you somewhere safe, I swear."

She locked eyes with me for a moment, then nodded her head. Maxie wrapped her arms around me and swung herself onto my back. "First a man that thinks he is the Boogeyman and his demon horse, and now Jack Frost who thinks he can fly. What's next, Santa Claus and his sleigh of magic reindeer?"

I just laughed. "Wind, take us to the North Pole." I just hoped there was something at Santoff Clausen that could help her.

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(North)

I was carving a small bird out of ice, chatting with the other Guardians in my workshop. We were waiting for Jack to show up for our monthly meetings when a yeti knocked frantically on the door. He came in, speaking quickly in yetish. "What? Jack is outside?" I asked the yeti. There was more gibberish. "He's hurt! Yes let him come in! He's not sneaking in, he's one of us now, he can come and go as he pleases." The yeti hurried off, muttering something under his breath.

Less than a minute later Jack stumbled in with a girl clinging to his back and a wild look in his eyes, but otherwise appeared unharmed. "Jack, you're ok!" Tooth fluttered over and smothered him in a hug.

"Yes," he replied, "I am." He got down on one knee and gently let the girl off his back. "She's not." That was obvious. It looked as if the girl was trampled by a herd of elephants. Jack looked really panicked. "She wasn't this bad when she took off! I think it was somewhere over Greenland when she passed out, and then the wind got really rough and-"

"Mate, calm down. I'm pretty sure North has an infirmary." Bunnymund tried to calm the winter spirit down. I picked up the girl and started the short walk to the infirmary. The room was a couple of doors down. The unused room was dubbed the infirmary for the rare occasion that a yeti or elf got hurt, or for the more common 'Jack doing something stupid and getting hurt' scenario. Bunnymund opened the door for me and I entered, gently setting the girl down on a bed in the corner.

"I can help her." Tooth spoke up. "I know a little about the medical field." She did a quick examination of the girl, "I will need a curtain for privacy though." I stepped out of the room to ask a yeti to get a curtain fo$r the infirmary, and a moment later Tooth had a small center to work in privacy. She was gathering simple medical supplies to work with when the girl sat up quickly and gasped. She stared at all of them, "Who are you all? Is he gone? Jack, is he ok?" She saw Tooth and Bunnymund and started to have a panic attack. "What are you guys?"

"Sandy." Tooth moved toward the girl. "Could you come here? I need you to calm her down." Sandy walked over and flicked a small amount of dreamsand in her face. The girl dully blinked a couple of times before she fell to the pillow, fast asleep. Tooth smiled her thanks, closing the curtain to finally get to work.

I turned my attention to Jack now. He seemed unharmed, but I notice a slightly bloody handprint on his hoodie and his staff. "You're hurt too." I pointed out, "Let me treat that hand." The winter spirit just got an exasperated look on his face.

"It was Maxie that got hurt!" He gestured dramatically to the curtain and the area that Tooth was working in, exposing his cut palm. "Oh," he grinned innocently, "that hand. Nothing to worry about. It's just a scratch." He tried to hide his hand in his pocket and shimmied away.

"Let me take care of that cut. It looks like it had black dreamsand in it." Jack got up and was about to walk away.

"It's fin-," Sandy decided that Jack needed a nap too. Jack collapsed on the bed, dead to the world.

I laughed. "Thanks Sandy." I took Jack's hand out of his pocket and started to clean the cut. I couldn't manage to clean some of the black sand out. "Uh, Sandy. Could you come here?" He nodded and floated to my side. I held out Jack's palm for him to see. "Is it Pitch?"

The yellow man examined the hand for a moment, then nodded somberly.

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** A/N: So did you like it? Tell me what you think! And wish me good luck. I told my editor about this new story and she threatened to kill me. I totally called it. And to the overly concerned people out there, she won't actually kill me, or even attempt it.**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: So my editor and I went through the entirety of the last two chapters and helped add personality to it. So yeah, go read it. Yeah, um, enjoy the show!**

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(Jack)

I blinked awake, a bright light blinding me for a moment. _I'm going to kill Sandy for this, but at least it was a nice dream. _

"Blimey, you finally awake, mate?" I heard the Pooka ask. I just groaned and hid my face under my arm. _It's way to early to be waking up. Just five more minutes?_

"Jack! Jack, are you all right? You had a deep cut on your hand but North patched it up for you! How are you feeling?" I heard Tooth frantically buzzing around. _They're worried, you have to get up! _An irritating voice in the back of my head was yelling, but I was still tired. Then the voice started playing to my logic. _You're showing weakness by not getting up, and you know Bunnymund will make fun of you. _I knew it was right, so I sat up slowly, taking time to let my muscles stretch.

"I'm awake, I'm awake! The answers to your questions are; yes I'm alright, and I'm feeling tired." I finally blinked away the morning fog and saw the Guardians surrounding my bed. I saw North smile and let out a booming laugh.

"Sorry we were all worried about you. That scratch had a good amount of black dreamsand in it, and we were all worried that it would poison you, or hurt you, or-" He looked down.

"Put me in Pitch's control, make me see his evil ways, or something like that?" I finished for him. Now they all turned their gazes to the ground. _ Would they really think I would do anything like that? Would I think that about one of them? I guess they have a just cause. I would be the only one to sympathize with him. Pitch and I have never really been believed in. _"It's okay that you thought that. I can see why you would think that. It makes sense. And I'm not mad."

I could almost feel the tension flee from the air. I just smiled and laughed at their expressions. Everybody else joined in until Sandy got our attention and made a motion toward Maxie. A big 'Do-Not-Disturb' sign appeared over his head, and we all immediately quieted down.

"So Jack, what exactly happened between you, Maxie, and Pitch? We can't put anything together." Tooth asked cautiously. I just sighed. _Where to start? I don't want to tell them about her death and the blizzard but… _The indecision was killing me inside, so I started at the first time I ever saw Maxie and went from there. Everything to what I thought was her death, to the man walking through her, and the Nightmares and Pitch, an then finally coming here.

"And I think if I could have stopped the blizzard or at least blocked some of it she wouldn't have died and Pitch wouldn't be chasing after her and-"

"I'm dead?" I heard the question coming from the other bed. "I don't feel dead. Maybe I'm just very sick. Which illnesses bring hallucinations, because that lady is half hummingbird, that dude is part rabbit, I see Santa Claus, and that man's clothes are made out of sand." Maxie observed. She tried to sit up, but whimpered in pain and fell back to the bed. "Oh yeah, how could I forget the boogeyman and his evil horses of doom. That was really strange."

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(Maxie)

I opened my eyes to a scene that was beyond my imagination. What appeared to be a hummingbird woman, a giant rabbit man, Santa Claus, and a short guy with golden sand as clothes surrounded the boy with white hair that claimed to be Jack Frost. _That's it, _I told myself. _That's it. You have officially gone mad. You knew it would happen eventually._

"-or at least blocked some of it she wouldn't have died and Pitch wouldn't be chasing after her and-" Jack had still been speaking.

"I'm dead." I thought for a moment. _Crazy, but defiantly not dead. _"I don't feel dead. Maybe I'm just very sick. Which illnesses bring hallucinations, because that lady is half hummingbird, that dude is part rabbit, I see Santa Claus, and that man's clothes are made out of sand." I tried to sit up so I could talk to them easier, but it hurt and I fell back on the bed. "Oh yeah, how could I forget the boogeyman and his evil horses of doom. That was really strange."

The hummingbird hybrid flew to my bedside. "How are you feeling? You were beaten up pretty badly." The woman fluttered around nervously for a moment, but then seemed to remember something. "Oh! That's right! We forgot introductions! My name is Tooth, the furry guy is the Easter Bunny, the big man in the red is North, you've met Jack, and the little golden one is Sandy. What's your name? Oh, sorry I forgot. It's Maxie!"

I just laid there staring at her for a moment. I started to think aloud to myself. "All of us. We're all ma. That's it." But then I saw the look on Tooth's face. She looked so disappointed. "But you're not. I'm not. You are all actually the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, Sandman, and Jack Frost. Ant that means…" I took a deep breath, wincing at the pain that sprung all across my chest. "That was actually **the boogeyman** that we fought." I actually fought the thing that hid under my bed at night. Kinda creepy if you think about it.

"So..!" Tooth began energetically, "what is your story? We heard about the fight from Jack, but what about before?" She asked.

I thought about it. _There's only three days I can remember. I guess it would be okay to tell them. But it would be really uncomfortable to tell them lying down. _"I'll tell you all I can remember, but can I sit up first?" I smiled sheepishly. It dawned on Tooth what I meant.

"Oh! Of course! Let me help you up!" Tooth rushed to my side. She put her hand under my shoulder and her other hand grasped one of mine. I pulled on her hand and she pushed on my shoulder, and slowly I sat up, leaning against several pillows. I was gasping in pain by the end of it.

"First though, how badly did I get hurt?" It hurt to breath, let alone run or do anything else.

Tooth thought for a moment. "A broken rib, several bruises on your stomach and chest, cuts in the same places, a minor concussion, and one arrow wound to the back. But you didn't lose or break any teeth!" You have to be happy about that!" I smiled. Count on the Tooth Fairy to worry about my teeth. I started laughing, which started to hurt and led to a coughing fit. _I can't breath!_ Someone pressed something cold against my lips. "Drink." Tooth commanded. I opened my mouth and choked the water down. Not only did it calm my coughing fit, it cleared my head.

I had everybody's undivided attention. Their gazes were trained on me, ready to finally hear my story. I sighed. "The first thing I remember was the cold. It was freezing, actually. I woke up in a large snowdrift. The first thing I saw was the moon drifting under the horizon. I knew I had to move or I would die, so I climbed out of the snowdrift and started walking aimlessly. I found myself next to an abandoned house in the middle of a forest. After a while, I started to get tired. Tired and scared.

"I've always been scared of the dark. It was worse now that I have no memory of who I was or where I was. Then I heard him. His voice is like darkness itself. 'Hello little one.' He just suddenly appeared next to me. Usually I would run, or something, but I was frozen in fear. 'And what's your name?' Still I didn't do anything, because I couldn't remember my name. 'Oh, is something wrong my darling?' He whispered into my ear. 'I'll tell you my name first then. It's Pitch. Pitch Black. Also known as the Boogeyman.' I didn't like how close he was, so I turned and hit him across the face,

"'Get back.' I don't know where that came from, but it did surprise him. His surprise then turned to anger, and he grabbed and threw me into a tree.

"'Just tell me your name!' Beyond his face I saw the moon rise fully above the horizon. A deep voice started resonating in my head.

"'Maxie. Your name is Maxie. But don't tell him that. When I tell you, run. Find the Guardians. Tell them that Pitch is stronger than ever.' The voice stopped and Pitch stalked away, yelling at someone.

"'This won't be a repeat of the Dark Ages, Moon!' Pitch was yelling at the moon and I was hearing voices in my head. I thought everybody was going crazy.

Suddenly a raccoon and an owl attacked Pitch, clawing at anything and everything. Not only were the people going crazy, so were the animals!

"'Get up and run! My pets can only distract him for so long! He has a suspicion of who you are! You need to run!' I did as the voice said, and ran from Pitch. The first night was easy because it was only Pitch chasing me. The next day I learned that people couldn't see me and therefore couldn't help me, so I kept running the entire day. Night fell again and I kept running, terrified that Pitch would catch me. I kept stumbling in fear and exhaustion, and somewhere Pitch had sent those demon horses after me. They were easily gaining on me. Then, before dawn on my third day, the voice spoke to me again.

"'A Guardian is near, only a little further.' And with that I had enough energy to outrun the horses until Jack came in and saved me." I finished my story with that, and the Guardians just gaped at me. Then I saw a grin form on San- I mean North's face.

"So you slept that long because you were literally exhausted, not because you're both just teenagers." North looked to Jack. "Now what's your excuse?" Jack scowled, making North laugh.

"Bloody good job, mate." Bunny came up to me and patted me on the back. "I don't know many blokes that could outrun Pitch." I winced when he patted a little to close to the wound on my back. _I didn't do anything impressive. I just manage to get hurt._

My attention, and everybody else's' was caught by Sandy. He made a couple of quick symbols and objects out of sand above his head. Everything went over my head, but everybody else got the message.

Tooth looked at me. "You're right, they do need their rest." Then, talking to me, "can you fall asleep on your own, or would you like Sandy's help?"

I didn't need to respond, because I was already falling fast asleep.

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(Tooth)

Sandy, Bunny, North, and I were talking in North's office. I finally asked the question everybody had been avoiding. "What are we going to do with Maxie? We haven't got any sign from Manny about her being a new Guardian, Pitch obviously wants her for some reason, and we have no idea what spirit she even is!"

"But I have a sneaking suspicion of who she is." North said quietly.

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**A/N: Soooo! What did you think about that!? Man, this chapter was hard to write! Introductions are always tough to get through, but don't worry! The action is coming soon! By the way, if you hadn't noticed, this isn't based on the books. I have them on the way though! Have a happy New Year!**


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Yeah! Over 100 views! Thank you all so much! It really is a great honor that people enjoy my story. There is going to be action in this chapter, so I hope you enjoy the show!**

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(North)

Sandy, Tooth, and Bunnymund all stared at me with mouths agape. Tooth was the first to speak. "But she died, North. She died way back in the battle of the Dark Ages. I was there." She looked downcast. "I saw Pitch kill her and Jokul."

"But Jokul is part of the proof! If Jack exists, why can't she?" I retorted. I knew this would hit Tooth the hardest because of her previous friendship with the spirit.

"Should we tell her?" I could tell Bunnymund didn't like this. He liked to say the spirit was unpredictable at best.

"Of course! It's here identity for moon's sake." Everybody went silent for a moment. "We could test her before we tell her, if you are all still unsure." A question mark appeared over Sandy's head. "Well, I figure that she would have the same powers as her the previous spirit. Also, if she could find the weapon that Seraphina left it. Tooth, you know where she dropped it, right?" I asked.

"I've searched for it a thousand times and I've never found it." Then I saw my own previous epiphany dance across her face. "But, you think now that she has returned, it would too. You're brilliant, North!" Tooth clapped her hands in delight. "Now we wait until the wake up so we can test your hypothesis!"

I had an important question for them all. "If you guys are planning on sticking around, would you mind helping around out here. There are three days until Christmas and there are still presents to be wrapped." The other Guardians sighed, then set to help bring Christmas.

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(Maxie)

I woke up when the sun rose the next day. I sat up, feeling much better than I did yesterday. It still ached when I breathed, and my back stung and burned a slight bit when I stretched. The infirmary seemed to be a normal room with a fireplace and a window. There was a small fire burning in the fireplace. I swung my legs over the side of the side of the bed and stood up. _How in the world did you heal so quickly? _It caught my curiosity. _Yay! Another question to ask the Guardians. _I stretched again, then padded quietly over to the fire. When I felt the heat fully enveloped me, I sat down to think. _What was I going to do now that Pitch was after me? What was I going to do now that I had no memories? What were the Guardians going to do with me? _I saw that all of the questions were circling around one basic question. _What now?_

"You know if you keep your face like that for too longer, it'll stay like that." Jack rubbed his eyes and rolled out of bed. I stuck my tongue out at him and he laughed. "I'm guessing you were thinking something along the lines of 'what now?'" He sat just outside of the flame's heat. I scowled. My thoughts shouldn't be that easy to guess. "And I'm guessing by your reaction that I was right." When I didn't say anything, he sighed. "Until you want to talk." He stood up, grabbed his staff, and sat on the windowsill.

I just looked at him. _What does he expect me to do with that?_ I got up and fully intended to go over and talk to him when Tooth barged in.

She looked surprised when she saw us both awake and out of bed. "Oh, um, good morning you two. How are you both feeling?" She looked to Jack first.

"Fine." He responded. Jack unwound the bandaged hand and held it out so Tooth could see. Only a thin red line showed up against his pale skin. "Soon that will heal too."

Tooth turned to me now. "What about you?" I thought quickly about it.

"My back is a tiny bit sore, and it stings when I move a certain way, and my rib aches a little bit, but otherwise I am ready to go!" I jumped, showing her that I was fine. Tooth just smiled.

"One of the perks of being immortal. Come on, the other Guardians want to talk to you." She walked out of the room, then stuck her head back in. "You too, Jack." Jack sighed and followed Tooth out the door. I followed after them quickly, not wanting to get lost in the giant building. Tooth and Jack turned into a room down the hallway. I went in just after them, and saw the coolest room _ever_.

It was full of moving glass sculptures. Then I looked closer at a bird flying past me and realized two things: that the bird was made of ice, and the freaking thing was flying! "Whoa," was all I could manage. Then I saw the Easter Bunny and Sandy wrapping presents in the corner. _The world really must be going crazy. _North came up from behind and put an arm around my shoulders.

"So you like my office." He said it as a statement, not a question.

"I like the birds." He just laughed, sitting in a chair in front of what I assume was the carving table. There were several large slabs of ice on top of the table. Everybody stopped their separate activities and looked to him.

North took a deep breath. "We know for a fact that Pitch is after you, Maxie. We also know that he has become a lot stronger and is coming for revenge. From what you tell us, we believe he is after you for who he suspects you are." I felt my eyes widen. _'For who you are.' Is that a good or bad thing?_ "We have a suspicion of who you are, but we have to prove it. You, Tooth, and Jack are going to look for something that was lost over 500 years ago. Tooth knows where it was last seen, but we won't tell you what it is. That is part of the test."

"But how will I know what I'm looking for if you don't tell me what it is?" Now I was really confused.

North just smiled. "You'll know it when you find it." I just twitched. I hated it when people said things like that. _'You'll see', 'I'll tell you when you're older', and 'be patient' were 3 things you don't just tell me. _North's words crawled under my skin. _ I just like to know things. What is the harm in that?_

"Now, can you tell me why exactly I am going?" Jack asked from behind me.

"For protection." North replied. It sounded as if he had to practice that a few times before it would come out. _Jack has something to do with finding it, and North doesn't want to lie to him._

"Tooth is capable of taking care of herself."

"Not Tooth. You're going to protect Maxie. She doesn't have any kind of weapon for fighting, she is still hurt, and Pitch is after her." Jack looked to me, then sighed.

"When do we leave?!" I was excited to learn who I was.

"Right now." Tooth grabbed my hands. "I'm so happy for you, Maxie. Let's go!" Tooth dragged Jack and me out of the room, to wherever this mysterious object disappeared.

* * *

(Jack)

We were flying over Canada, or Tooth and I were at least. Maxie was clinging to my back, enjoying the view. "That's so cool! Whoa, that's a big lake!" She was so excited to see everything. Suddenly she shifted and actually _pulled herself on my shoulders_.

"What in the world are you doing?" She was sitting on my shoulders, and I had no idea what to do.

"Oh calm down, Frostie. I'm just getting a better view. A lot of people say I'm like a cat." She stopped, and I could almost hear her thinking about that last statement. "At least I thought they did. I'm not so sure." Maxie then decided that she would rather sit in the crook of my staff.

"Are you going to sit still anytime soon?" I had already anticipated her answer.

She just smiled. "Nope." She swung her legs back and forth. I grimaced. _She's going to lose her balance._

_ "_Please don't do that, you might fall!" She just stuck her tongue out at me.

"Cool it Frostie. I won't fall." She attempted to poke me in the stomach with her foot, but missed and lost her balance. "Jack!" She fell. Both Tooth and I flew after Maxie. Tooth was about 3 yards away from Maxie when something extraordinary happened. A small portion of cloud detached itself and moved toward Maxie faster than any wind could muster, coming under Maxie and halting her fall. Maxie looked about as surprised as I felt.

"What was that?" I flew down so I was even with her.

"I have no idea." She looked so confused.

"Can you make it move?" I was dumbfounded. _What got into this cloud?_ Maxie's face contorted in concentration, and suddenly the cloud shot forward in rapid bursts of speed. "Wow." Tooth and I followed quickly after her, but she kept going forward. "Maxie! Stop!" Her cloud-thingy stopped. We finally caught up to her. Maxie was astounded.

"This is so cool! I'm going to name this little guy Charlie!" I just looked at her. _How unpredictable can you get?_

"Aren't you scared that you almost fell to your death?" I would be absolutely terrified. _Not that I would tell Bunny that._

"You would think so, but somehow before I even knew I was going to fall, I knew Charlie would catch me. I just _knew_ the clouds would keep me safe."

Tooth called out to us, "can we keep going? We're still a good while away." I held my thumb up, signaling to keep going. Tooth started flying with Maxie and me following. Soon it took less concentration for Maxie to make the cloud move forward.

"You okay?" I asked suddenly after flying silently for so long. She jumped slightly, and I knew I had startled her out of deep thought.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiled. "I'm just wondering what this-" She gestured to Charlie, "would have to do with any kind of 'spirit'? Who would that make me, the Cloud Queen?" She looked so serious when she said that, I couldn't help but laugh. She glared for a moment, then joined me.

"If you are the Cloud Queen, where's your crown?" I retorted. She laughed harder.

"Hey," she suddenly stopped laughing, "name any flying creature." Maxie suddenly seemed very excited.

"Okay," I said, thinking for a moment. "An eagle!"

She started to concentrate again, and the cloud started to grow, stretching and shrinking into a large, white bird of prey. Her concentration broke and she gasped. I was shocked too. It was a perfect model of a really big eagle. I thought it was just made of cloud until it turned its head toward me and screeched. "Its alive!?" I touched the eagle's wingtip. It was solid and warm. "How did you, and the, what in the-"

"We're here." Tooth called back to us. She didn't seem surprised at all by the giant bird. "We'll land in that small clearing over there." She pointed to a small break in the trees, and we all banked toward the spot. Charlie the giant eagle landed first, letting Maxie slide to the ground. I landed in a small tree right off the side of the clearing, and Tooth landed right next to Maxie.

When I looked around, my jaw dropped. The area had the same effect on Maxie. "What?" Tooth asked the both of us.

"This is the place I woke up." Maxie responded at the time I said, "this is the place I saw Maxie die."

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**A/N: Anybody want to guess either what Maxie needs to find or who Maxie is? Leave a review or whatever!**


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N: Oh. My. God. Over 100 views in one day! Thank you guys so much! Um… two quick things. One, Jokul is a person. Two, Charlie is a long story. Actually, so is Jokul. Thank you to Cjabbott for the help in this chapter! Go read her stuff, it's great. Now, on with the show!**

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**(Maxie)**

_Why of all places, did Tooth bring us here? This place, it makes my head hurt. _"You need to find what she left." Tooth said. She looked as if she was about to cry.

"What's wrong, Tooth?" I was worried about the hummingbird hybrid. Charlie nudged me with his beak. I turned to him and realized just how big he was. Standing up, the top of his head was even with my shoulder.

"You- I mean she was my best friend. And the only reason she would ever drop her dag- I mean the thing would be if she was killed. I saw Pitch kill her husband, but not her. We never found her, alive or dead, but I saw the thing lying on the ground." Tooth sighed. "North seemed to think you are the same spirit, so he believes you are only one that can find it."

I felt double the pressure now. I had to find it to prove I am some special 'spirit', but nobody will tell me which one until I found this thing. Now I felt I had to find it to bring some kind of closure to Tooth. I walked over to the empty house, touching the outer wall.

For being abandoned, it didn't look all that abandoned. It honestly looked like it had housed a family just the other day. I found the front door and attempted to enter. The handle wouldn't even turn. _It must be locked. Wait, the back door is always unlocked._ I was taken aback. _Why did I know that?_ Even though I doubted myself, I tried the back door, but it was locked, too. _Why did this all seem so familiar to me? _I sat down on a swinging bench on the back porch.

The house itself was one story, and looked to be about four rooms total. Both porches were covered by overhangs, leaving where I sat very chilly at the moment. Then I noticed I was still wearing the clothes I wore when I woke up. A very torn purple sweater and jeans were all that protected me from the cold. I shivered, and was about to stand up just as Jack sat down.

"A little cold?" He asked. At first I thought he was being sarcastic. When I saw that he wasn't, I nodded.

"I can't figure out were to look! I don't even know what I'm looking for." I sighed. "Do you know anything?"

"I can't help you with that." I stood up and leaned on the banister. He looked at me, and something past caught his attention. "Wow. That is an old tree." I turned to the tree that had caught Jack's attention. The tree's branches spread far out. It was in general, a huge tree. The first branch from the ground started twenty feet up, but almost touched the ground at the end from the weight of itself. That tree started something in me.

_The Tree. It was your father's favorite tree._ A memory rushed in from nowhere and slapped me across the metaphorical face. _A middle-aged man was smiling down at me. His face was slightly wrinkled, and his short brown hair was starting to gray. He pulled the toddler me into his lap and pointed to the same tree out to me. "And if you ever need anything, the Tree will help you. Just climb to the top and I can guarantee you'll find what you need."_ The memory faded from my mind, and I came back to reality. Someone was shouting my name. "Maxie! Wake up! Maxie!" Then someone nudged me from the side. I opened my eyes to Charlie's beak right in my face. I hadn't noticed before, but his eyes were a startling green. "Maxie!" Jack called. I turned to him. "Are you ok? I mentioned that tree and you just collapse." I frowned, realizing I was lying on the deck.

"Yeah, I'm fine. No need to worry. I'm just fine." Charlie nudged me again. "Yes Charlie, I'm fine. Jeez, you are acting just like a cat." I sat up, putting my hand on his head. Suddenly, a green glow emitted from the oversized eagle. It blinded Jack and me at first. Once I could see, I saw a green shape shrink smaller and smaller, leaving a white tomcat where the eagle perched. "Meow." The cat licked his paw and started cleaning his whiskers. "Charlie?" I gaped; the cat looked up at me expectantly with the eagles same green eyes.

"Cool." Jack couldn't get enough of my cloud powers. "Do you know how you do that?"

"That's beside the point Jack! I know where the thing is! It's at the top of the Tree." That made Jack pay attention.

"Really?" He jumped up. "Let me just fly you up there." I thought about it, then stopped him.

"Wait. I, um, think I need to climb it. On my own. Don't bother asking." I butted in when I saw the question forming on his face. "I just know." I looked to the Tree. I would guess it was about three hundred feet to the top. Nice tree for my first climb." Jack just looked at me, then at the tree, trying to guess how fast a first climber would take to fall off a behemoth like that.

"Good thing you have a cat as your guide. Couldn't find a more experienced climber than a cat." Charlie said, breaking the silence. Jack and I looked at him, then at each other, then at Charlie the kitty cat again.

"Did you? Did he?" I thought that I was going crazy until Jack nodded.

"You made me. I have the same abilities you do. Well, I don't have any of your special powers." Charlie spoke as if we were stupid. "I don't see why it is so surprising." Maybe I wouldn't be so surprised if he didn't have a British accent.

I would look this over if he could lead me up the Tree. "Ok, are you sure you can lea me up the Tree?" I asked.

"Of course I can! Cats are some of the best climbers in the world!"

"Lets go!" I picked Charlie up and started toward the Tree. He yowled and twisted out of my hold. "What?" I asked. Charlie just looked at me with a haughty expression.

"I refused to be carried." He turned his nose up at me. I sighed, then gestured at the Tree. He took the lead, and as soon as he set one paw in the snow, he hissed and jumped back on the porch, and then to my shoulder. "I am not adverse to riding." Jack just laughed. I laughed too, and walked to where the branch almost touched the ground.

Charlie jumped on to the branch, starting to show me up the tree. Jack waited patiently on the ground. I looked down on the winter spirit. He looked so worried. And so far away. I held tightly on the branch I was sitting on. _I'm so far up. I don't want to fall. I'm going to fall._

"Maxie." I heard Charlie call. "Maxie. Look at me." I did what he said. "It is okay. You will not fall. Just keep climbing." I took a deep breath. I reached for another branch, and kept climbing. "Good, now grab this branch. And now sit on the same branch I am." Charlie scooted to the side. "We're at the top." I looked around, and saw that there were still a couple of branches above us.

"I need to get higher." I started to climb again. I could see a strange dip in the trunk two feet above us.

"I wouldn't use that branch Maxie. That branch won't hold anything's weight, let alone a humans'." I reached out, paying no attention to the cloud cat. I grabbed the branch and it felt strong and sturdy. I pulled myself on to the branch and was now eye level with the dip in the trunk. "That shouldn't be possible. That branch was unstable when I just put a single paw on it."

I ignored his ramblings and reached out to touch the discrepancy in the bark. I yelped when my hand passed through the bark and into the Tree. I pulled my hand out quickly. _Is this the place that man was talking about? _I hesitantly put my hand through the bark again, feeling around for anything out of the ordinary. I picked up two things from the strange hollow. I brought them out and looked at what I had in my hand. There was an average sized key and a long dagger.

The dagger's sheath was intricately carved. It looked like there was representation from every season and every element carved into the fine ivory like material. I pulled the dagger out and found it to be the exact opposite of the sheath. The blade was about eight inches long and black as midnight. It was a clean simple blade. Something familiar popped in my mind. _Death isn't ugly, but it isn't beautiful either. It's precise and does it job and nothing more._ I heard that somewhere before, and it seemed to described the blade pretty well. I put it back in its sheath and put it in my back pocket.

"Jack! Hey Jack! Could I get a ride down?" I called down to him. The height didn't seem to bother me anymore. He flew up to where I was perched.

"Need some help?" He laughed at Charlie's startled face. "Did you not find anything?" I just smiled.

"I just need a quick way down, and I would rather not jump." He offered his hand and I took it. On the way down, Charlie jumped back on my shoulder. I winced. "Could you take it easy on the claws?" Charlie didn't reply, but his eased up on his grip a little bit. My feet touched the ground, and I walked to the house.

"Where are you going?" Jack called to me.

"Exploring." I walked to the front door and sticking the key into the lock, I turned the knob and the door opened. I walked inside the small home, looking around. It wasn't clean but it wasn't a wreck. I walked to the most familiar room in the house. On the door there was a sign that read 'Disaster Zone: Keep Out'. L opened the door to a small room with two beds. I took Charlie off of my shoulder and just outside of the room.

"Stay out for a moment." I went in the room looking for any clothes l could wear. I chose a green long sleeve knit shirt with a hood and pocket, and a different pair of jeans. I took a small pair of brown combat boots. I took the dagger and a small brown belt and looped the sheath through the belt. I put the belt on and walked out of the house with Charlie following close behind. Where's Tooth? I asked Jack, but he was staring into the distance. "What's the matter?" I looked in the forest where Jack was staring. I saw a horde of Nightmares, and Tooth standing in front of them.

"Come on." Jack said, coming out of his shock. "We need to kick Nightmare butt."

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**A/N: Holy cow! I'm delaying Maxie's identity for one more chapter. Sorry, but you get an awesome fight and the unveiling of an identity in the next chapter! An entire chapter from only one person's point of view! That is pretty awesome! Um, review or whatever. Bye!**


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Not much to say on this chapter… Sorry for the late update. Enjoy the show.

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(Jack)

I wasn't frozen in fear. I wasn't afraid of the Nightmares or Pitch. I was just surprised that he would try to attack Maxie with two Guardians with her. _He must be very confident of himself. _I heard walk up behind me. "Where's Tooth?" I didn't respond, looking for Tooth myself. I saw her between the dark horses and us, a little ways into the forest. "What's the matter?" Maxie sounded worried. I saw her turn to where the Nightmares and Tooth stood, locked in some sort of epic stare down.

"Come on." I finally said. "We need to kick Nightmare butt." Maxie just nodded. She beckoned Charlie with her hand, and put her hand on his forehead. I wasn't surprised when Charlie started glowing, and stretched into a large African lion, still white in color.

"He'll be surprised when he finds a girl that will kick his butt. Lets go." She started towards Pitch's minions and Tooth with me following quickly behind. Out of the Nightmares, Pitch started to emerge, but he wasn't alone. A dark blue energy emitted from the large man. His skin was dark, as if he lived on the beach.

Pitch and the newcomer stopped a couple of yards in front of Tooth. We stopped next to Tooth. "Did they hurt you?" It was strange that Maxie was more concerned about Tooth then frightened of Pitch, even though he almost killed her a couple of days ago. The amount of selfless concern surprised me. Then Maxie turned to Pitch. "You had better hope I do not get my hands on you . I swear to god, it you ever hurt me or one of my friends again, I will shove my foot so far up your-" I quickly put my hand over her mouth to prevent that horrific threat from going any further.

"Something a little cleaner." She glared at me. "Please." She rolled her eyes dramatically and nodded. I removed my hand and she thought for a quick moment.

"I will kill you so hard you die of death." She looked proud of that statement, and Charlie gave a defiant roar that put actual meaning behind that ridiculous threat. If I was Pitch, I would be terrified.

Pitch just smirked. "Oh, come on. I come in peace." _That's pretty hard to believe with an army behind you._ "I came to bargain." Pitch turned to Tooth. "If you give me the girl now, I promise to make the Guardians' death quick and painless. If you don't give me her, you will die all the same, but it will be much more painful." Pitch flashed his sharp teeth. "It will be just like the Dark Ages, except this time, I win. Though, my victory will be faster if I don't have to fight _her_." Pitch gazed to Maxie nonchalantly. "Just give me little miss Mother Nature and we can all be happy." _She's Mother Nature! That explains how she made Charlie, but what are her other powers?_

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Maxie freeze in shock. She was staring at the ground, eyes wide. _She's going to be hard to protect like this._ "Good news, Maxie! You aren't the Cloud Queen after all." I laughed, and after the moment it took to click with her, she started to laugh, too.

"You obviously don't know me very well, Pitch." Maxie stood up straight, showing no signs of fear to the Nightmare King. "People think because I'm small, that I'm weak, that I won't put up a fight. People like you actually. But I swear, even if I'm fighting a losing battle, it will be the hardest fight in your life. I don't give up to make things easier. If you fight me, you better know exactly what you're up against." Pitch's face showed utter shock._ That is the first time I've ever seen Pitch caught completely off guard._ Tooth looked at Maxie, then stood right next to her.

"You're right Pitch. This won't be a repeat of the Dark Ages. I will not let you kill them." Tooth said that with such conviction that even the Nightmares scurried away from her a little bit. _She sounded kind of motherly. _"I will not give you Maxie." Tooth seemed to have calmed down, but I could see the unimaginable grief and anger in her eyes. _Like a grizzly bear mother and her cubs. _Pitch had gotten himself in a very dangerous situation.

"Fine then." Pitch growled. "When you leave, Ahti, take all the Nightmares. But leave a dozen or so of our special ones. That's all we need to take all the Guardians." The mysterious man named Ahti just nodded, and walking with at least a hundred of the dark horses, disappeared into the shadows, leaving Pitch and twelve Nightmares glaring at us.

"Three times these couldn't take me and Maxie a couple of days ago! What makes you think these will be any better?" I yelled. Pitch's confidence was starting to set me on edge.

He just smirked. "Nightmares. Attack." Four of Pitch's minions charged each of us. I quickly shot icicles toward the nearest horse, but it didn't disintegrate like normal. It continued to charge me as if there wasn't a sharp piece of frozen ice in its neck. _What the!? _I called the wind to lift me above the Nightmare's range. Looking to Tooth and Maxie, I could see they were having the same problems I was. Tooth's wings were doing little to no harm and Maxie was throwing snowballs at the Nightmares, just making them angry.

"Maxie, the snowballs don't work this time! Try something else." She stopped and looked at me, then pulled something out of her belt uncertainly. I saw a black dagger in her hand. She held it awkwardly while a Nightmare approached from behind, ready to attack. "Maxie! No!" I called the wind, but I would be to late. The dark horse reared up on its hind legs, ready to smash down and crush her. Its front hooves started to descend, but would never reach their target. Something white streaked across the clearing and collided with the horse. Charlie and the horse went rolling and Charlie dug his razor sharp claws through the horse. It collapsed into wet black sand. I was so focused on Maxie and Tooth that I didn't notice my own fight.

Charlie looked up and lunged. He clawed through a Nightmare behind me. "Pay attention." Charlie growled. I returned to my own fight with the reassuring knowledge that he would protect Maxie and Tooth. I dodged flying hooves and leaps and swung out with my staff when I could. I had just managed to destroy the last Nightmare when I heard Bunny, Sandy, and North approaching. I turned to them, relieved to be fighting fairly. Now that they were here we could help Tooth and Maxie.

I was turning to go and help Maxie when suddenly; a searing pain appeared in my previously injured hand, making me drop my staff. I heard Maxie scream behind me. I turned and saw her on her hands and knees, eyes wide with pure agony. " Did you honestly think that was a normal arrow," Pitch said mockingly.

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(Maxie)

It hurt so much; it was almost impossible to breath. It felt like thousands of white-hot drills burrowing into my lower back. I could only hold myself up for a moment, then fell on to my hands and knees. "Did you honestly think that was a normal arrow? It was a normal arrow. A normal Nightmare Sand arrow. Any of the black sand that was left in you is in my control. I can make it hurt, but it won't physically harm you, but I bet it does hurt a lot, doesn't it?" I looked up to him and scowled. I wouldn't give him the pleasure of answering. I saw anger bloom in his eyes. He concentrated for a moment, and the pain grew tenfold. I collapsed, writhing in agony, but I still wasn't going to answer.

"You are worthless." He answered my silence. "I don't see why the Guardians have done this much with you. You can't do anything special. Well, it doesn't matter anyway. You'll be dead soon." _Was I really worthless to the Guardians? Am I any use to them at all? _Pitch reached down and grabbed the back of my neck. He lifted me into the air so I was eye level with him.

"Pitch." I saw North, Bunny, Sandy, and Tooth move toward Pitch threateningly.

"Nope. Not a move from the Guardians or I make the pain unbearable for both of them. _It already is you idiots. Just get him._ I wanted to say, but I couldn't speak. I could see their internal dilemma written on their face. Save me but risk hurting both Jack and I, or let Pitch kill me and get Jack. I thrashed, trying to tell them to fight Pitch and take a risk. I managed to kick Pitch in the stomach. He flinched and bent over slightly. "Watch it brat!" The pain flared once more and I went rigid.

Pitch grabbed my throat, cutting off my air. _He's going to kill me! He really is going to kill me. The Guardians are too confused to do anything. _It hurt not being able to breathe. I couldn't talk. _Let me go! Help! Let me go! _Pure panic raced through my veins. I saw Charlie make a move toward Pitch, but the Nightmare King noticed, and the pain rose far above my limits. _Not both at once!_ I started to kick and flail. Dark dots blotted out parts of my vision. _I have to survive._ I grabbed his wrist that held me in the air. He yowled suddenly in pain and anger.

I realized distantly that I had somehow burnt him. I looked at my hands and saw that there was fire dancing in them. I smothered them in the dirt. Jack and the other Guardians appeared at my side, and then I noticed someone was speaking "-and you need to breathe. Come on Maxie." I did what the voice said, and found I did feel better. I did it again and again until my thoughts were clear.

"Did I just set my hands on fire? Shouldn't I be burnt?" I asked when I found my voice again. I was trembling all over from the pain, and I noticed Jack's hand shaking slightly. North looked at me and shrugged, then started speaking with his thick Russian accent.

"I think that is one of your powers. I think you have the ability to control some of the elements, maybe even all five." I was puzzled.

"I thought there were only four; earth, air, fire, and water."

"But you forget the fifth element. It is life, an element in its own right. It is how Charlie was able to fight next to you now, and how you have the power to change him. You might have other powers as a spirit, but I haven't seen anything yet." _So I really am Mother Nature._ I didn't realize I said that aloud until everybody nodded.

Tooth fluttered over to where I dropped my dagger, then picked it up and brought it back to me. "You'll need Balance." She handed the black dagger to me.

"I know I'm a little out of it, but I am still not that much of a klutz." Tooth laughed.

"No Maxie. The previous Mother Nature called the dagger Balance." I looked at Balance, then sheathed it.

"It fits its name rather well." With that everybody went silent. Tooth looked ready to cry again. _This is so awkward. It's even the worst kind of awkward; the sad kind. _With that Sandy made a couple of symbols above his head.

"Yes, it is about time we returned to the Pole," Tooth said. With that everybody got up. Bunnymund reached down to pick me up, but I snapped at him. "I've got it." With a little nudging from Charlie, I struggled to my feet. I took one step forward and almost ended up on the ground again.

Without a word, Bunnymund stood next to me, letting me lean on him. He was probably taking more of my weight than I was. We walked to North's sleigh and took off in silence. Then I remembered something from earlier.

_Am I really worthless? Am I really a burden to the Guardians? _A different part of me answered. _The Guardians need you. Pitch wouldn't have bothered with you if you had been as worthless as he says you are. _I smiled and nodded to myself. Of course that was Pitch's plan. He was trying to make me believe lies. _But if they're lies, why does some part of you believe him?_

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A/N: I am so sorry for the extremely late update. School kind of snuck up and slapped me right across the face. I have biology this semester, so that means chapter outlines and article summaries and … stuff. I will try to update on a weekly basis and possibly extra chapters on the weekends. Thanks for reviewing to the people that did, it made me so happy!


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